National Football League News and Rumors

For the first time in a long time, much is expected of the San Francisco 49ers. As Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com sees it, the fans welcome the increased expectations. Maiocco talked about the impact of last year’s 13-3 finish on this year’s edition

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier is spending some of his limited relaxation time doing anything but relaxing. Frazier is the only active head coach to participate in this year’s USO tour to the Persian Gulf. He has been joined by former Steelers head coac

Rams tight end Brody Eldridge suspended four games

And perhaps now we know what the Colts dropped a fifth-round pick in 2010 who started 16 games in two seasons. Tight end Brody Eldridge, waived by the Colts and claimed by the Rams, has been suspended four games for violation of the league’s policy rega

Although the Chargers are the only team that could move to L.A. in 2013, the Chargers say that the memo hinting at the possible move of a team to L.A. in 2013 doesn’t move them any closer to, um, moving. Mark Fabiani, the team’s special counsel on sta

Playoff turnover trend may not hold this year

In recent years, playoff teams have been bounced from the next year’s postseason field at a rate of 50 percent. Last year, precisely six of the 12 playoff teams from 2010 (three per conference) didn’t make it back in 2011. This year could be the yea

Sean Payton’s bad 2012 isn’t getting any better. Payton, the Saints head coach who is suspended for the year for his role in the team’s bounty program, is getting divorced, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune. According to the report, Payton

The powers-that-be in Atlanta are hoping that support from the local sports teams will help persuade the public to plunk down an extra penny for every dollar used to buy stuff. According to Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Falc…

The team that has won six Super Bowls has given special recognition to a man who has sold out the team’s home stadium for six separate events that didn’t involve a football game. The Rooney family has given Kenny Chesney a “Six for Six” plaque com

The Detroit Lions' offseason travails have been well-documented, but you can't blame this year's police blotter champs for this one. Former Lions and Cleveland Browns cornerback Eric Wright, who signed a five-year, $38 million contract with the Tampa Ba…

Saints ink two more draft picks

The Saints got a late start on the draft pick signing, but they are making their way quickly through the group now that they’ve started. New Orleans announced Monday that they have agreed to contracts with defensive back Corey White and offensive tackle

Ray Perkins resurfaces at Mississippi junior college

More than 20 years after coaching in the NFL and more than 10 years after coaching anywhere, coach Ray Perkins has returned to football. The former Giants and Buccaneers head coach has become the new head coach at Jones County Junior College in Ellsvill…

The lawyers for former Falcons running back Jamal Anderson say he was just tired when he was arrested for driving drunk last week. The police say that it’s true Anderson was tired, but he was also drunk. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has obtained the

NFL teams looking for a way to fill up a few hours during this lull in the schedule can start breaking down the prospects eligible to be drafted in the Supplemental Draft. NFL V.P. of Football Communications Michael Signora said that the league informed…

After weeks of having his name on the fringes of the Saints bounty investigation, linebacker Jonathan Vilma has yanked former Saints assistant Mike Cerullo into the middle of the radar screen. Cerullo, according to Vilma, blew the whistle on the situati…

Bills’ Eric Wood says it’s time for NFL to test players’ blood

As the NFL and the players’ union continue to haggle over the details of implementing a program of testing players’ blood - which is the only way to test for the illicit use of human growth hormone - one player says it’s time for the haggling to

Falcons hope spacing out Michael Turner’s work leaves more late

Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff made Michael Turner his big-ticket signing in 2008, in part to give rookie quarterback Matt Ryan a chance to ease into life as a starter with a solid running game behind him. Now, they may want to ease back on th…

Cosell: Shonn Greene is a “one-speed runner”

Jets running back Shonn Greene burst onto the NFL scene during the playoffs following the 2009 regular season. In three postseason appearances that January, Greene rushed 54 times for 304 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 5.6 yards per carry. Greene l…

49ers linebacker Aldon Smith is still recovering from being stabbed early Saturday morning while breaking up a fight at a party at his house and took a moment on Sunday to thank those who expressed concern for his health. That tweet has been Smith’s onl

The Dolphins drafted Ryan Tannehill with the idea that he’d be the long-term starting quarterback. But unlike the two quarterbacks drafted before him, Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III, Tannehill doesn’t look ready to start right away. The Palm Beach

The Jets did not live up to the hype last season. Coming off two straight AFC Championship Game appearances, the Jets flopped to an 8-8 record that left Rex Ryan eating his words and the team reeling from finger-pointing in the locker room. There’s been

Gerald McRath braces for his contract year

Titans linebacker Gerald McRath realizes that, if he’s ever going to take his game to the next level, the time to do it is now. As David Climer of the Tennessean explains it, McRath is entering the final year of his rookie contract, putting him in line

Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones tells rookies: I once blew $1 million in one weekend

Adam "Pacman" Jones' recent appearance at the 2012 Rookie Symposium was no doubt a stark object lesson to all NFL prospects about the simple fact that no matter how much you've got in life, it can all go away pretty quickly if you're not caref…

Rick Upchurch battling cancer, raising money for chemotherapy

Rick Upchurch, the former Denver Bronco who was one of the best punt returners in NFL history, is battling leukemia and attempting to raise money to pay for his treatment. The Chieftain newspaper in Pueblo, Colorado reports that Upchurch has leukemia an…

Matt Light working on a deal to join ESPN

Speculation about Matt Light’s retirement dragged out through the winter and spring. But once summer vacation’s over, he’s about to be back in football in a new capacity. As Alper mentioned in the one-liners this morning, the former Patriots left t

Talk in Atlanta of John Abraham as a Hall of Famer

Will Falcons defensive end John Abraham find himself in the Pro Football Hall of Fame some day? A lot of folks in Atlanta think so. That’s the word from the team’s official website, which notes that there’s an ongoing discussion among Falcons fans,

Report: Some NYC athlete charities aren’t that charitable

One of the first things most professional athletes do is set up a charitable foundation. It’s part of the script, good for public relations and tax purposes. And many athletes use those for the greater good, to give back to their hometowns or a cause ne

Martez Wilson thinks he’ll be a Hall of Famer one day

If someone walks up to you and says the name Martez Wilson, you will likely have one of two reactions. If you’re a Saints fan or Illinois alum, you likely recognize him as a linebacker who went in the third round of the 2011 Draft. If not, you probably

Report: Vick wedding cost $300,000

Pacman Jones once spent $1 million in a weekend, and Mike Vick has now dropped nearly a third of that amount in one day. According to GossipExtra.com, a celebrity gossip site covering Miami, Palm Beach, and Broward Counties, Vick’s wedding at the Founta

Dez Bryant turns recruiter for NBA neighbors

Dez Bryant’s trying to haul in another touchdown for Dallas. Only this time, it’s for the NBA Mavericks rather than the Cowboys. The big-play receiver sent a Twitter message to free agent point guard Deron Williams, considered the prize of this summer

The stories keep piling up, at an alarming rate. And reading the individual tales of heartbreak adds to the collective sense of dread at what’s coming next. Former Chargers and 49ers linebacker Steve Hendrickson is suffering from a host of cognitive pro

The Bills rookies found team owner Ralph Wilson’s bust in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. T Andrew McDonald organized his fellow Dolphins rookies to help volunteer at an animal care center. It looks like former Patriots T Matt Light will be moving into t

Steelers running back Jonathan Dwyer isn’t fat anymore, and that could be big news for the backfield in Pittsburgh. Weight problems have plagued Dwyer since before he was in the NFL: He showed up out of shape at the 2010 Scouting Combine and slipped to

Lawsuit over Super Bowl seating fiasco continues

A year and a half later, the lawsuit against the NFL, the Cowboys and Jerry Jones brought by fans who were displaced at Super Bowl XLV when temporary seating at Cowboys Stadium wasn’t available is still winding its way through the legal system. The Fort

Adam Jones tells rookies he once spent $1 million in one weekend

The man who now owes $11.65 million for his conduct in Las Vegas during NBA All-Star weekend five years ago told incoming rookies last week that he nearly spent 10 percent of that amount on another 48-hour period from Friday night through Sunday night. …

Vonta Leach draws high praise from current, former teammates

Plenty of folks complained about the presence of fullback Vonta Leach at No. 45 on NFL Network’s Top 100 list. But there’s an argument to be made that Leach should have been even higher. At Leach’s football camp in Robeson County, North Carolina,

Coming soon: Live mic’d up players and live referee conversations

Tucked away at the bottom of this Wall Street Journal article about the NFL's ongoing attendance problems is a note about some the league's plan to share a little more live on-field conversation with us. Specifically, some kind of app is in the works th…

Monday kicks off Irrelevant Week in Newport Beach, California, and if Chandler Harnish is like most other Mr. Irrelevants in NFL Draft history, it could end up being the highlight of his career. Hopefully not, but the numbers aren't in his favor. Mr. Ir…

NFL32OT: Can Bears Be Contenders?

Jul 2

Episode 164 Damien Woody breaks down what the Bears need to do to be successful this season. RGIII holds passing camp with Redskins receivers. NFL32 crew discusses who will be the top team in the AFC East.

01:53

Michael Floyd Is In Football For The Long Haul

Jul 2

Michael Floyd is living the football dream â€“ especially after being a first-round draft pick by the Arizona Cardinals,â€¦

02:26

5 In, 5 Out: Denver Broncos

Jul 2

Marcellus Wiley and Damien Woody break down the Broncos' chances of making the playoffs.

01:18

Impact of Bengals' draft class

Jul 2

Did the Bengals do enough in the draft to make a long run in the playoffs? Find out what our analysts think on "NFL Total Access."

Sports Columnists

Jim Trotter: NFLPA has legitimate concerns about Brees negotiations

Jul 2

Let me get this straight: Some of the unsigned free agents who were franchised by their teams are upset with the Players Association because they believe the union is giving preferential treatment to quarterback Drew Brees in his attempt to secure a mul…